Peter van Gelder
American sitarist and musician
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Peter Van Gelder (born March 19, 1940) is a sitarist and musician who played saxophone and bass in The Great Society.[1]
19 March 1940
Peter Van Gelder | |
|---|---|
Van Gelder in 2019 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | Peter Van Gelder 19 March 1940 |
| Genres | |
| Occupations | Musician, educator |
| Instruments | Sitar, saxophone, bass guitar, flute, theremin |
| Years active | 2005–present |
| Formerly of | The Great Society |
| Website | https://petervangelder.com/ |
Van Gelder moved to San Francisco after college and learned bass to play in The Great Society; he played saxophone on White Rabbit.[2] He became interested in Indian music after working at a San Francisco radio station and took a summer class at University of California Berkeley with Ali Akbar Khan where he learned to play sitar.[2] Deciding to continue his studies with Khan in Kolkata, he lived in India for three years and became a disciple of Ali Akbar Khan.[2][3] While in India, he met other musicians with whom he formed the band The Saddhu Brand when he returned to California.[4]
He is an instructor at the Ali Akbar College of Music in San Rafael, California.[1][5][6]